News Reports for August 1, 2012

Seal H3N8 PB2 Recombination With Canine & Equine Sequences

Recombinomics Commentary

This outbreak is particularly significant, not only because of the disease it caused in seals but also because the virus has naturally acquired mutations that are known to increase transmissibility and virulence in mammals.

The above comments are in the "significance" summary of the newly published mBio paper, "Emergence of Fatal Avian Influenza in New England Harbor Seals" by researchers at Columbia University.  The paper describes sequences from five H3N8 sets of sequences from seals who died in late 2011 off the New England coast.  The "naturally acquired mutation" of greatest concern was D701N in PB2, which is an acquisition which is known to increase avian influenza transmission in mammalian hosts.

The released PB2 sequence from a September, 2011 sample, A/harbor seal/Massachusetts/1/2011, like all five PB2 sequences, has D701N due to G2101A.  (Snip) this change and the downstream sequence is an exact match with H3N8 PB2 sequences which are common in canine and equine isolates (Snip).

(Snip) in addition to G2101A, the PB2 sequence has acquired a cluster of three silent changes (Snip), which would have less selection pressure, yet all three changes are in a similar set of canine and equine H3N8 sequences (Snip).

The acquisition of these mammalian polymorphisms on an avian genetic background signal rapid evolution of the avian sequences toward mammalian transmission, and raise concerns of unknown hosts serving as mixing vessels for recombination and rapid influenza evolution. http://www.recombinomics.com/N...

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. --Unknown

     

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by: Carol@SC @ Wed Aug 01, 2012 at 02:33:24 AM UTC

GlaxoSmithKline shipping U.S. flu vaccine with new strain coverage recommended for 2012-2013

PHILADELPHIA, July 31, 2012 - GlaxoSmithKline announced today it has begun shipping the first lots of 2012-2013 FluLaval® (Influenza virus vaccine) and Fluarix® (Influenza Virus Vaccine) to CDC distribution centers and U.S. healthcare providers. This follows approval of this season's GSK seasonal influenza vaccines by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research.

FLULAVAL is approved for use in adults (18 years of age and older) to help protect against influenza disease caused by the virus subtypes A and B contained in the vaccine. FLUARIX is approved for use in adults and also children (3 years of age and older).

"The three strains of influenza virus in the seasonal influenza vaccine can change from year-to-year based on estimates of the strains that will circulate in the upcoming season," said Dr. Leonard Friedland, VP and Head, Clinical/Medical Affairs, GSK North America Vaccine Development. "This is a key reason why the CDC recommends everyone six months of age and older gets an influenza vaccination every year. For the 2012-2013 influenza season, two of the three strains have been changed compared to last year's formulation."

Beginning with today's initial shipments, GSK flu vaccine will be available to most healthcare providers in time to address back-to-school immunization needs of parents and children. Subsequently, the company anticipates being able to supply its seasonal flu vaccines to the US marketplace well into 2013. Continued: http://www.fiercepharma.com/pr...  

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. --Unknown

     

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by: Carol@SC @ Wed Aug 01, 2012 at 02:38:47 AM UTC

U.S. Infectious Disease Chief Urges Flu Scientists to 'Engage,' Support H5N1 Research Moratorium

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - A voluntary moratorium on potentially dangerous experiments aimed at understanding highly virulent strains of the H5N1 influenza virus should continue for the time being, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) Director Anthony Fauci told a meeting of flu scientists here. But, he added, scientists should redouble their efforts to engage with the larger public to gain support for the vital but risky work.

"The flu scientific community can no longer be the only player in the discussion about this research," Fauci said. "You will unquestionably lose the battle for public support for your research if you ignore this issue." Fauci remarks, delivered at the annual meeting of the NIAID's influenza research centers of excellence, also echoed a call for openness and transparency he made in June in the pages of Science, published by AAAS, which also publishes ScienceInsider. Continued: http://news.sciencemag.org/sci...

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. --Unknown

     

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by: Carol@SC @ Wed Aug 01, 2012 at 06:01:37 AM UTC

New 'bird flu' killing baby seals, raising concerns for humans

(Snip)

Many animals, including seals, bats, pigs, birds, even whales can get a type of flu, known as Influenza A, and these viruses can make their way into the human population. Wild birds are the primary natural source of all Influenza A, but the viruses can jump species and mix with one another with deadly results. For example, the 2009 H1N1, or "swine flu," pandemic virus was the result of a combination of bird, pig and human-infecting virus bits coming together.

The new seal virus is a H3N8 virus, a category that includes flu viruses that infect dogs and horses.

It's not clear that this new virus poses more of a potential danger to humans than the dog and horse varieties, lead researcher Simon Anthony, of Columbia University, told LiveScience in an email.  

But unlike the dog and horse flu viruses, which have been with their current hosts for some time, this new seal-killing virus jumped from birds quite recently, picking up mutations that have previously helped bird flu viruses adapt to new mammal hosts. These include the ability to bind to receptors found in the respiratory tracts of mammals, including humans, Anthony and colleagues write.

Their genetic analysis indicated the new virus had descended from a strain of bird flu that has been circulating among North American waterfowl since at least 2002.

The adaptations observed in this new virus suggest it may be able to continue infecting seals and evolve into a new branch of H3N8 viruses, as happened with those that infect horses and dogs, they write in research published today (July 31) in the journal mBio. http://vitals.nbcnews.com/_new...  

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. --Unknown

     

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by: Carol@SC @ Wed Aug 01, 2012 at 06:08:52 AM UTC

US: Maui pig worker contracts first Hawaii case of rare flu strain (Hawaii)

An adult Maui resident who works with pigs contracted Hawaii's first confirmed case of an unusual variant flu strain that has been detected in six mainland states in the last year, the state Health Department said today.

The state Agriculture Department plans to take nasal swabs of a "couple of herds" on Maui looking for evidence of the H3N2v virus that has been found in 17 other patients on the mainland (Snip)

"If we find an infected herd, our recommendation is to not move the animals to make sure there's no more transmission in the herd and then they will be OK to go to slaughter once they're well," Foppoli said. "Human-to-human transmission is uncommon so that's not a likely source. You've got to suspect that there's a pig intermediate somewhere along the line where the person got the virus."

The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention late last week confirmed Hawaii's first case of the H3N2v virus after the unidentified patient sought medical attention after experiencing symptoms consistent with the regular flu, including fever, cough, and body aches, the Health Department said. Because the patient's primary care doctor is a participant in DOH's influenza-like illness sentinel network, a respiratory specimen was first sent to the State Laboratories Division for testing.  

The patient has since fully recovered and did not require hospitalization, the Health Department said. Continued: http://www.staradvertiser.com/...

(Note: It seems that Niman at Recombinomics may be right about the H3N2v strain being more widespread than has been reported.)

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by: NewsDiary @ Wed Aug 01, 2012 at 07:38:30 AM UTC

This was posted by me.

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. --Unknown

     

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by: Carol@SC @ Wed Aug 01, 2012 at 07:39:46 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

US: Flu-like illness closes swine barn at Monroe County Fair (Indiana)

Several hogs have become ill during the Monroe County Fair, prompting officials to close the swine barn to the public.

"We are dealing with hogs that are getting sick," (Snip) the cause of the illness is not known at this time, so swine flu precautions are being taken while tests are being run.

The swine barn was closed Tuesday and will not reopen during the fair. Exhibitors are still being allowed in and out of the barn to care for their animals. (Snip) http://www.heraldtimesonline.c...

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. --Unknown

     

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by: Carol@SC @ Wed Aug 01, 2012 at 07:44:48 AM UTC

India: Sangvi resident dies of swine flu (Maharashtra)

PUNE: The throat swab report of a 37-year-old man who died at a private hospital in Thergaon on Sunday returned positive for swine flu on Tuesday. This is the first death caused by H1N1 influenza in Pimpri-Chinchwad and the second in Pune district this monsoon (Snip)

(Snip) the man, Milind Dixit, a resident of Sangvi, was critically ill and had been on ventilator support at Aditya Birla Memorial Hospital (ABMH) since July 27. "His condition deteriorated further and he died at 5.40 pm on Sunday (July 29)," (Snip) Dixit had developed symptoms on July 24. (Snip) http://timesofindia.indiatimes...

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. --Unknown

     

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by: Carol@SC @ Wed Aug 01, 2012 at 08:01:40 AM UTC

Please post new news stories to...

News Reports for August 2, 2012

Thank you!

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by: AlohaOR @ Thu Aug 02, 2012 at 03:52:11 AM UTC